THE SECRET TO ETERNAL CONFIDENCE

You need this,
Said the wizard, waving an assortment of makeup brushes
And guiding me
Towards a seat before a mirror
In the beauty zone/danger zone
Of the pharmacy.
Oh, I said, meekly,
My obedience surging 
In a sudden weird need for beautification.

So, I sat,
Surrounded by elegantly packaged dreams,
And the wizard flew
Back and forth between me
And a fancy Japanese makeup brand
On his magic makeup brushes,
Returning each time to dab my face with 
Yet another 
Secret to Eternal Confidence.
Voilà! he said, preening at himself in the mirror.

So, I peered at myself,
Wondering whether this might finally be
THE FOUNDATION,
The one that takes a decade (or two?) off my many decades,
And has the staying power of
My parents’ marriage.

Bonus points for fixing every single one of my problems.

I shall keep you posted!

My poetry book, ILLICIT CROISSANTS AT DAWN, will be out sometime in late April!